The Portland daily press., 1887-10-27

cations of slaverys abolition. shall be preserved,
or not; they don't care whether the issues OF the I
war for the maintenance Of the Union, secured by |
suneflngs and sacrifices transcendlng the power
Oh the human mind to portray, shall be maus So
cure, or not They don't care? Then somebody |
Is 10 blame. They do care? Then why are they |
not Wllllhg-eVen eager-t0 read about lhe Work
that has all these sacred objects in view, and IS
helping 70 solve the stupendous problem, Ilhey
contain? They do care. Yes, believe It. Ihelr
lack OF interest IN the American Missionary Asso-
elatlOn ana their unwillingnesS 10 read us monthly
magazine Is because Of their ignorance OF ITS
work, and therefore II is that there Is mere Mlus
neld, hopefui ana promising, for CULTIVATION ~ az
those VINO wish to aid In the advancement Oh inc
cause.
The reasons assigned for raising the question to
which the above answers have been givenare most
TONS of peril that threatens the cause committed
TO our care: snail we heed the lessons Whlen iie
signals Hash The work we have nave on ha th %
an INHERITANCE. The fathers where are ~, they
and the prophets, do they live forever? Inc old
supporters Of the Association aie rapidly alsap-
pearlng. Ine great majority OF those WIZ Ioitt3-
one years ago saw this Society come INTO exist
ence, and at that time became its FRIENDS, nave
passed on 10 their reward. The few VINO remain
our veterans. As we readthe story OF inc nght teS
made against expressions the perseseSutoahh ,oa9y
they suffered because they would not compromise
with wrong heroes and heroines we prounaly a ha
knowledge them. When our Grand Army oI tue
Republic turn out in parade | notice place IS
given the sons and grandsOnS OF The 0l1 solulets.
rles OF biyouac, march and battle through when
their fathers passed, and the fires OF pairlollsm
burn fresh and strong in their young neal ans,
Should again the country be in danger from enc
mics, domestic or foreign, and &ar summon her
defenders 10 the field doubt not these boys would
be found standing In the places OF their fathers
for their country's defense. And shall not the
same be true of those who represent that Grand
ARMY Of Abolltlonlsts and Reformers whose agl-
tatlons aud discussions compelled slavery 10 work
out Its essential spirit of treason TO popular gov,
ernment, and by so doing became the incidental
occasion OF the great conflict whose victorious
battles created the Grand Army of the Republic?
Shall not they be sensitive to the indications OF
| danger That threatens the work these reiormerS
began, and be faithful to guard against it? noble
heritage has been besueathed the churches IN TINS
WORK 80 dear 70 ALI ear hearts-so dear, we must
believe TO the heart Of our blessed Lord and Mas
ter-the preaching of the gospel 10 the poor. Good
viii to men-the Keynote Of heaven brought down
| them the world ever heard sounded in the match
| less harmony of all the Sayior's life and teach
| ing hymned in every word he spoke, in every
work he wrought ali the way from Bethlehem to
Calvary-good will to men. 1t is the message this
Association has received and been commissioned
| to go forth bearing where "Alan's inhumanityt to
| man makes countless thousands mourn, where
rights are denied and injuries inflicted where the
poor are oppressed and the weak defrauded, until
the music OF its love shall soften every hardened
heart, and the power OF its truth conquer every
wrong. Multiply the number of those who shall
carry 1t. Multiply the number of those who shall
| support it.
The nominating committee reported the
| following additional committees:
On Secretary Strieby's Paper-Rey. c. M. Lau-
| son, d. d., Rev. J. W. Kinds, K. l.. Champlin,
| Esq.
Oh Secretary Baird's Psper-Rev w. A. Nc
Giney, Rev. L. f. Babb, James w. Burgess, ESQ.
On Secretary Powelps Paper-Rev Joseph An
| derson, ID. D., Rev ". R. Eastman, Timothy II.
| Chapman, ESQ.
Rev. DR.. Behrends spoke briefly on DR..
| PowelPs paper saying:
Dr. Rehrends' Remarks.
"Mr. Chairman, / hesitate very much to
say even word or two that l am pressed to
say. especially in view of the paper last
read to US. should like to say something
on this matter of publications. l confess
that l find that this matter is not at all in
| satisfactory form, so far as We pastors are
| called upon to deal with it.
"Now, have hadsa growing feeling that
| this entire matter of publications is in a very
| crude and unsatisfactory form. We have
| five or six or seven UNCONVENTIONAL societies.
/ cannot see for the life of me why every
society ought to have its separate publica-
ten. If these are denominational societies
| and they are adopted children in the house,
| hold, do not see why we cannot reach
| something like single magazine that shall
| give opportunity for all Of them to be re-
| presented in its columns. The Presbyterian
Church of the United States has had this
| matter under consideration for some time
| past. 1t has been debated in the General
| Assembly. and the matter has finally been
| decided in faver Of single publicotian that
| will represent all departments of the church
| benevolent work; and End that although
| there was very strong minority opposing
| 1t at first, still the new magazine has been
| gaining in approval from the time it was
| started. Now, do not know that anything
| of that kind is practicable with the Congre-
| gational body, but l do tell you that it would
| take great burden from my own mind and
| heart and would remove great many prac-
i Sanl IL. hnr lf L.,
| people better acquainted with the work of
| our different societies, If something Of that
| kind were practicable among u.s. We need
to have single magazine devoted to our
| missionary operations with the news boiled
| down, and then when the magazine comes
| into the household, people will read it."
| (Applause.)
Continuing the discussion Rev. Mr.. Dick
| erman said:
II want to say word upon this subject Of
| benevolence which has been brought before
| us by Secretary Powell. 1t gives me great
pleasure to stand before a Maine audience.
| feel as thought belong to Maine in pc
| culiar way, though have been in Massachu-
| sets four years. and / feel as though a
Maine audience belonged to Inc and that
| whenever l stand before an audience which
is made up OF the representatives of Maine
churches as this audience largely is, can
| speak to them with little more freedom
than to any other audience of this kind.
Now. brethren and sisters, suffer word
4
here OF the farmer who gave his twenty-five
| cents, and next year wanted to know if that
thing was to be kept up. That farmer is not
| here. l remember very eloquent address,
delivered by the most eloquent man in this
| country perhaps in the church where Dr.
| Beard used to minister in Syracuse before
| the American Board, in which the remarks
of an arch bishop were brought before that
| congregation representing that his great ca
thedral had been built by contributions that
| were for the large part below ten cents The
| people who gave their ten cents were not
there, and the people who give their ten
gregational churches throughout our land
| and they are not made up of such people as
contributed for the building of that cathe-
| dral; they are not made up Of those to whom
| the giving Of a dimeis a sacrifice. They are
made up of those to whom God has given
more than the widows mite, and of whom
| he requirest more than the widows mite,
more than nickels, dimes, quarters and silver
dollars. He requires that as we have re-
ceived abundantly so also we shall give
largely and freely and generously.
| Now, l want toIspeak to you. | want to
| speak to my brethren and sisters here of the
| Congregational church and want to speak
to those who | know spend their dollars and
their fifty dollars and their hundred dollars,
/ and perhaps there are some who spend their
thousands of dollars for the qualification of
| TASTE from the enjoyment which comes from
| travel, and seeing distant parts Of the world,
in the delightful employments which are so
| numerous in these times, and want to put
| to you this great question, l daily put to
| myself, How can / best invest my earnings
to the glory Of God, and for the salvation Of
men, Said our Saviour ITO him that hath
| it shall be given" / speak to those who
| have, to those who have the missionary spir-
| it, "to them that hath it shall be given, and
he shall have abundance" Of it. And so
when see q congregation gathered on such
an occasion as this, to listen to such adj
dresses and such papers as we have heard
this morning / know that have before me
congregation who have the missionary
spirit, those who are interested in the mis-
sionary cause, those who love to work among
the freedmen of the South, and the Chinese
on the Pacific slope, and the Indians on their
reservations in the West, and long to have
| tnem have more of this missionary spirit
given them. Il want them to have it in larger
abundance, and if only we can have.that re-
snlt throughout our country in all our
churches. II the giversf would give double
what they now give, if they would quaduple
wnat they now give, if they would give ten
Iold what they now give, the result would be
an enlargement of their hearts, an enlarge
ment OF the grace of God within them, an
enlargement Of all Christian joys which now
give them the most delight, and that is what
pray Tor and what l desire"
Ihere Is story which presume many OF